Shower Heads: The Key Things You’re Missing—Make Every Bath Better

1. Overhead Shower Head

Overhead shower is a necessity of the shower set with the advantage of big spaying, normally it with square and round shape, also in rectangle and oval, with diameter of 200-400mm, the components including surface plate, nozzles and connect ball, from material analysis it can be in ABS plastic(plastic), brass and Stainless steel.

2. Shower Mixer

Shower mixer is the most important part of the whole shower set, with the precision accessories inside, it can control the spray of shower hand or overhead shower, it was consisted by mixer body, handle and water diverter, it normally made of brass while nowadays most factories also use stainless steel which is low cost but less shapes and short life time. As for water diverter the most popular and widely used is ceramic cartridge, wear-resistant and long lifetime, can use at least 500,000cycles.

3. Shower tube

It is a hard pipe connecting Shower Mixer and overhead shower and is made of copper, stainless steel and other alloys. The current rise and fall shower has an extensible tube, of 20-55 cm above the shower tube. Generally speaking, the height of the shower is 30 cm higher than the top of the head, but the height of the body varies from country to country, so the most appropriate height of the shower can be made according to the individual’s height.

4. Shower hose

It is a hose that connects a hand-held shower to a faucet., composed by SUS layer, inner hose, nut and insert, is elastic and can be stretched. The material in the hose can be divided into: EPDM,PVC,PEX etc. And so on, the outer tube material generally has Brass,SUS,PVC and so on. There are more stainless steel on the market, more copper or multi-layer pvc for high-end brands, and more single-layer pvc for low-end brands. Stainless steel is also divided into 304stainless steel, 201stainless steel and electroplated stainless steel.

5. Handheld shower

Shower hand is another necessity of the shower set, you can wash the shower at will in your hand. It can spray at any part of our body, from the outside we can see the body, surface, nozzles, connect screw which connects with a shower hose and hold on a wall bracket, there normally a button or nut on the surface which can adjust the spray modes. in the inner structure there were wire-net which can filter the impurities in the water; Shower hand is another necessity of the shower set, it can spray at any part of our body, from the outside we can see the body, surface, nozzles, connect screw which connects with a shower hose and hold on a wall bracket, there normally a button or nut on the surface which can adjust the spray modes. in the inner structure there were wire-net which can filter the impurities in the water;

6. Wall bracket

To hold the showerhead . Sprinkler brackets can be divided into three categories as well as showers:

• Handheld shower bracket：It is the most commonly used shower, this bracket only has the function of fixing the shower, commonly known as the bracket.
• Overhead bracket： Overhead shower is commonly known as the big shower, the bracket is installed into the wall, does not have a lifting function, can adjust the flower sprinkling angle, the upper and lower movement angle is more flexible.
• Sliding bracket： this kind of shower support is usually used by large showers, which has the function of raising and lowering the height of showers, and the height of showers can be adjusted according to the height of the user.

by form

• handheld shower: You can hold shower in your hand and shower at will, shower bracket has a fixed function.
• overhead shower:

The shower head is fixed on the top of our head, and the bracket installed in the wall, but it does not have the lifting function., (but it can adjust the angel with the ball to adjusts the angle of the outlet water, and the angle of movement up and down is more flexible.

• shower side spray shower :

Install in the wall, It can install as customer’s need,for normal shower and massage. The handheld shower is smart, the overhead shower is fixed while the side spray shower is fixed in the wall.

by sprayer

Shower can be divided into five types: general type, massage type, soft type, turbine type, and strong pressure type. Today, there are also many multi-functional shower, including a variety of ways to get out of the water, and each has its own advantages. The shower is classified according to the sprayer

• general type

That is, the water is ejected from a number of outlet holes, forming a lot of water surface, using different water outlet angles to create a large area of rain-like effect, suitable for simple and quick showers.

• massage type

Massage water is formed by concentrating a small amount of water in the shower runner cavity and then spraying it at regular intervals. Massage spray can stimulate every acupoint of the body, with both massage and refreshing effect.

• soft type

The outlet water is a soft water droplet flow formed by the mixture of water flow and air in the mixing chamber, which is especially suitable for shampoo.

• turbine type

The flow of water is concentrated as a column of water, which makes the skin feel slightly numb and itchy. This kind of bath can stimulate and clear the mind.

• strong pressure type

The flow out of the water is strong, which can produce a foggy effect through the collision between the flow of water, which can increase the interest of bathing.

By the mode of installation

It can be divided into two categories: conceal install and clear lifting rod shower. Classified by the way shower is installed:

• concealed install：

The distance between the center of the hidden outlet of the wall and the ground should be 2.1 meters, and the center distance of the shower switch and the ground should be 1.1 meters. Put all unnecessary things in the wall, leaving only simple functional modules, no visual hindrance at all, this is the wall-to-wall concealed shower. The whole system is composed of Shower Mixer control module and effluent top spray module. The water pipe buried in the wall replaces the traditional open top spray bracket and hose. No longer has the handheld shower design to further simplify the shower system, the right top spray size not only achieves the purpose of water saving, but also meets the shower water requirements. In modern home decoration design, “conceal” is a typical design means, by hiding the functional parts, highlighting the overall sense of beauty and space, is one of the best ways to expand small space. The concealed shower looks good, but there are two problems that need special explanation: the first is the need to bury the pipe in the wall in advance, which should be communicated with the decoration plumber. Second, the general concealed shower Shower Mixer is very expensive.

• clear lifting rod shower：

Generally shower out of the water as the definition, the best distance of 2 meters.

At present, shower materials on the market generally include plastic shower, alloy shower, ceramics, stainless steel shower and copper shower and so on. The most popular on the market is plastic shower.

1. Plastic material

The outlet hole of the plastic shower is made of silica gel, so it is easy to block the water hole if the scale is used for a long time. The silicone outlet tooth has the function of self-clean, and the scale blocked in the hole can be removed by hand pressure. Nowadays, plastics have good properties, high strength and high heat resistance. The shower price of this kind of material is more affordable, the performance-to-price ratio is high, but it is easy to have problems such as water leakage over a long period of time.

2. Stainless steel material

Because stainless steel shower has just become popular, the quantity of stainless steel shower on the market is very small. Compared with copper shower, stainless steel shower does not contain lead, and is acid-resistant, alkali-resistant, corrosion-free, does not release harmful substances, and will not pollute tap water. After many years of use, the stainless steel material still has good glossiness and long service life. However, because the hardness, toughness, solution casting and cutting of stainless steel are much more difficult than copper, which increases the cost of R & D and production.

3. Alloy material

The main material of alloy shower is zinc alloy, aluminum-magnesium alloy, this kind of material is not afraid of wear, lightweight and durable, but it is likely to be black after a long time, so the number of shower of this kind of material is less and less.

4. Copper material

The copper shower on the market is generally chrome-plated and looks glossy. Copper contains lead, so be sure to choose shower with high quality copper plated with chromium when choosing. Because copper shower is heavy and has good thermal conductivity (shower gets hot when people take a hot bath), a small amount is currently found in luxury shower products.

Installation size The Concealed shower outlet is about 210cm away from the floor; the openly installed shower has a lifting rod, and the position of the shower switch is the same from the ground as the hidden switch, which is 110cm high; after adjustment, the distance between the openly installed outlet and the floor should also be about 210cm, of course, when actually installed, it should be adjusted according to the actual height of the family. The size of the overhead shower, according to the diameter is divided into 6 inches, 8 inches, 10 inches of several sizes, the flow is similar, many countries basically do not exceed 12 liters/minute. Shower hoses are generally 1.5 meters long, some are 1.8m 2.0m, and the basic length for bidet spray hose is 1.2m.

1. The elderly, pregnant women and children: they do not need too many fancy functions, their requirements for shower only need to be functional and practical. So if there are old people and children at home, the shower should be equipped with a lifter, thermostatic shower to better control the water temperature and completely solve the phenomenon of cold and hot water temperature.
2. couples：According to market research, almost all hostesses will choose handheld shower, because people are free to control the height and angle of the handheld shower, and their hair will not be splashed at will; on this issue, however, men prefer to wear shower, because, like many advertising men, they are handsome naked. As for the posture shower, although it has a good side spray function, it is limited by its own fixed installation position, and only a small number of consumers bring it into the bathroom for use, and only as a supplementary function. Therefore, in order to meet the family rigid needs of ordinary couples, double-headed shower is the most suitable.

1. Look at the surface

From the point of view of the appearance, most of the high-quality shower are more beautiful, the thickness is moderate and reasonable, the interface of each place is more meticulous, and there will be no crack burr. The poor quality shower may be slightly rougher, less beautiful, the interface processing is not very complete, and sometimes there will be gaps. See if the electroplated coating on the tube body and surface of shower is smooth and smooth. The quality of shower coating not only affects the quality and service life, but also affects the usual cleaning and hygiene. Shower general surface chromium plating, a good coating can not be corroded in 24-hour acetate fog testing. We can see its glossiness and smoothness when selecting. Brightness and smoothness show that the coating is uniform and the quality is good.

2. Look at the weight

High-quality shower is made of metal or plastic, and the material is solid, so the weight will be heavier. And some inferior shower on the market, due to Jerry-building in the production process, so the weight is relatively light.

3. Look at the shower main body design

The main body design of high-quality shower generally adheres to the quality concept of “thicker, better materials and more perfect details”. Therefore, there will be clear requirements on the length, width and height of the main body, the proportion is reasonable, and durable. And some inferior ones tend to simplify materials in production, so that the ratio of length, width and height is obviously out of balance, and the use time is relatively short.

4. Look at the Valve core design

Valve core affects the service experience and service life of shower. Good shower uses ceramic spool for smooth and friction-free use. When selecting, you can twist the switch by hand, which makes it feel comfortable and smooth, which can ensure the smooth and reliable performance of the product in use.

5. Look at the Shower Mixer body

Choosing the Shower Mixer is the key to identifying whether the shower is good or bad: it directly determines the quality and service life of the shower shower. The materials of Shower Mixer on the market are mainly copper and alloy. In order to save cost, manufacturers usually use all-copper main body and zinc alloy handle, which is used in most Shower Mixer on the market. How to judge the quality of shower Shower Mixer? Method 1: blade scraping Many unscrupulous merchants will use not all copper to impersonate all copper, or directly impersonate alloy, so how can we identify it? In fact, there is a simple and rude way to scrape it with a blade or scissors. How do we shave? Of course not directly scraping the top of the Shower Mixer. We use the blade to scrape the pipe where the Shower Mixer is connected to the wall. The material of real copper will be scraped to pieces, but alloy and stainless steel cannot be scraped. The sound made by tapping the copper with the hand is very clear, while the sound made by the alloy is dull. (this trick is suitable for bulk purchase, and this method can be used for sample testing. Method 2: judge the speed at which the fog dissipates Here’s another way to choose a shower Shower Mixer: we can hold the Shower Mixer subject by hand for 3 seconds and then release it. The copper Shower Mixer fog spreads out very quickly in less than 2 seconds, and vice versa. Method 3: judge the quality of the valve core of shower Shower Mixer Valve core is the key to choosing Shower Mixer. It can increase the service life of Shower Mixer. In the water test, the flow stops as soon as the Shower Mixer is turned off. If the valve core, is still dripping after it is turned off, the quality of the valve core is very poor.

6. Look at tube thickness

For shower, the tube thickness of copper tube is also a feature to distinguish whether shower is good or bad. General high-quality shower, the tube thickness of copper pipe can reach 2.5mm, which ensures the water output and durability to the maximum extent. And some of the lower quality, the thickness of the copper tube is only 0.8mm, the durability is much worse.

7. Look at the shower spray

Look at the spray effect: from the outside, shower shape looks similar, selection must look at its spray effect, good shower can ensure that each small spray hole spray balanced consistent, in different water pressure can ensure a smooth dripping shower effect, selection can test the water to see whether the jet flow is uniform. . Look at the injection mode: the internal design of shower is also different, when choosing handheld shower, in addition to looking at its injection effect, there are jets and massages in, handheld shower injection mode, which can bring more ideal shower pleasure in general.

1. Brand values are different

When we choose to buy shower shower, we will first consider its brand. Therefore, a well-known bathroom brand is bound to be higher in price. Excellent brand itself is to give shoppers a status symbol, is a high level. There is bound to be a brand premium. The more high-end the brand, the higher the premium.

2. Production costs are different

In fact, this is most related to product quality, and many small manufacturers will reduce the use of materials in production costs. For example, the all-copper shower showers is mixed with some impurity recycling materials to reduce the cost. Others reduce the production time by reducing the wall thickness of the products to reduce the use of materials to reduce the process and processes, and so on. These aspects of Jerry-building will affect the quality and pricing of showers. Of course, there are other aspects of cost reduction, such as the use of low-cost production in very important places such as coatings and spools. As a front-line big brand, it is generally strictly controlled in terms of quality. Fine workmanship, full use of materials, meticulous inspection, the cost will naturally be higher.

3. Different sales channels

The price of the same product is also different in different sales channels. This is actually very easy to understand. Take physical stores and online stores for example. In general, physical stores open in the building materials market need to pay storefront fees, labor, water and electricity expenses, taxes, business administration fees and so on, while online stores do not have these fees. The online store naturally has an advantage in price.

4. The functions of the products are different.

Experienced plumbers all know that the reserved spacing of shower inner wire elbows is 15cm in concealed installation, with an error of no more than 5mm and 10cm in open installation, so keep in mind that they are all centering measurements. Too wide and too narrow will not fit, do not rely on adjustment nipple, adjustment nipple adjustment range is very limited.

5. Keep a plane with the wall after pasting the wall tile

To reserve the silk head is to take into account the thickness of the wall brick, it is best to let it be 15mm higher than the hair embryo wall, if it is horizontal with the hair embryo wall, and so on, you will find that the wire head is too deep in the wall, and you may not be able to install the shower. However, do not be too high above the wall, because the future decoration can not cover the screw head and the adjustment screw is very ugly.

6. Pay attention to different styles of showers

Now, with the continuous improvement of people’s quality of life, there are a variety of styles of showers, and the installation methods are different, including those installed openly, concealed, wall and ceiling. As hydropower workers, they should constantly learn and master the installation methods of new products on the market.

7. Remember that it is hot on the left and cold on the other

We should remember that the thread reducing elbow outlet of shower is hot on the left and cold on the right, which is not only the provisions of the national norms and the habits of the owners, but more importantly, the products of the manufacturers are also produced in accordance with the regulations of the left hot and the cold on the right. If you make a mistake, the equipment may not work or be damaged. This should be noticed when the pipeline is laid.

8. Rosset Fixed rosset of thread reducing elbow

The fixation of thread reducing elbow is very important, if it is not fixed, the size can not be positioned, and it is likely that the mixing valve will not be installed after decoration.

Shower Mixer Protect Shower Mixer with cloth： When tightening the Water Shower Mixer, be careful and wrap the screw cap of the water Shower Mixer with a thicker cloth or plastic film to prevent the water Shower Mixer from being misused by the wrench. Before installation, you’d better put some water in the pipe and flush it. Because there are many impurities in the newly renovated pipes, and even a lot of fine sand, if installed with shower directly to release water, it may lead to shower inconvenient cleaning, and affect the effluent effect of shower. Clean up the site dust after installation: some dust will inevitably be produced in the installation process, which should be cleaned after the installation work is completed to ensure that the site is clean and can be washed with water. Owner acceptance method: shake the shower pole to check whether it is firm, whether the switch conversion is smooth, check whether the water pipe is leaking Shower installation data: Shower Mixer is preferably 1 meter away from the ground. The best height for installing the shower head of the lifting rod is 2 meters, which is just the distance for the effluent to cover the whole body, and the flow intensity is appropriate. The installation height of the mobile shower handle is usually 1.7m, which needs to be adjusted according to the user’s height. The most suitable distance is for the person to stand on the ground and reach for the shower handle. Otherwise, if it is placed too high, people will stand unsteadily with the shower on tiptoe, resulting in safety accidents.

How to clean shower heads?

After using it for a period of time, shower is likely to accumulate some scale, resulting in poor or chaotic water flow. Therefore, scale cleaning is an inevitable work for us. According to the different functions of shower itself, it is mainly divided into the following methods: Manual cleaning: we need to remove the net cover of the shower, or remove other areas that are easy to absorb the scale, clean it with a brush and install it back to the original place. Some shower are equipped with special disassembly tools at the time of purchase, which can be easily used. Hand wipe cleaning: such as rubber particles designed for shower holes, soft rubber materials, comfortable and easy to expand, easy to clean, as long as you massage rubber particles with your fingers, you can easily expand, crush and pop. This kind of cleaning method is a popular cleaning method in the market now. Self-cleaning: many showers are made up of special structures and can be cleaned automatically during use. For example, the showers with a cleaning needle can clean the scale without manual cleaning, which is very convenient. Shower cleaning considerations:

• Strong acid should not be used to remove scale to avoid corrosion on the surface of shower.
• Do not wipe the surface of shower with hard objects such as steel balls, so as not to scratch the surface of water Shower Mixer.
• Do not forcibly disassemble the shower for maintenance, improper disassembly will cause damage to the appearance and internal structure of the product.

Shower Head Maintenance methods

The ambient temperature can not exceed 70 degrees Celsius, because high temperature and ultraviolet light will greatly accelerate the aging of shower and shorten the service life of shower, so the installation of shower is as far as possible away from Yuba and other electrical heat sources. Shower cannot be installed directly below Yuba, and the distance should be above 60CM. Living in areas with hard water quality, people should try to choose shower with glue particle outlet hole or with straight cleaning device, even if the shower outlet hole is blocked by scale, it is easier to clean. Remember not to forcibly disassemble the shower, because the internal structure of the shower is complex, unprofessional forced disassembly will lead to the shower can not be restored to its original state. Do not use too much force when switching on shower Shower Mixer and adjusting shower outlet mode, just turn it gently. Even if it is a traditional Water Shower Mixer, it doesn’t take a lot of effort. Pay special attention not to use Shower Mixer handles or shower bracket as handrails to support or use The metal hose of the shower head should be naturally stretched and should not be coiled around the Shower Mixer when not in use. At the same time, be careful not to form a dead angle at the joint between the hose and the Shower Mixer, so as to avoid breaking or damaging the hose. Every half a year or less, remove the shower and place it in a small basin, water the surface and interior of the shower with edible white vinegar and soak for 4-6 hours, then gently wipe the outlet of the shower surface with a cotton dishcloth: reload the joint with water for a while, wait for white vinegar and scale to flow out with the water, in order to eliminate or reduce the impact of scale on shower, and can play a certain germicidal efficacy. You can often use a soft cloth to stick a little flour to wipe the shower electroplated surface, and then rinse with clean water to make the shower surface as bright as new.